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HB 5957

AN ACT RELATING TO TOWNS AND CITIES -- LOW AND MODERATE INCOME HOUSING

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Mike Chippendale and 5 co-sponsors

HB 5957 lets people seek expungement by application even if they had another conviction during the waiting period, expanding eligibility to set aside multiple convictions.

04/02/2025 Committee recommended measure be held for further study
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Bill Summary · HB 5957

Summary — HB 5957 (1965 PA 213 amendments)

Status and sponsors
- Introduced: Sept. 26, 2024 by Rep. Kara Hope (with several co-sponsors).
- House action: Passed the House Dec. 13, 2024 (Roll Call #537, 56–0) “given immediate effect.”
- Subsequent referrals: Referred to Committee on Government Operations (Dec. 18, 2024); legislative record also shows referral to the Joint Committee on Energy and Technology (Jan. 22, 2025).
- Statutory changes: Amends sections 1b, 1d, and 1e of 1965 PA 213 (MCL 780.621b, .621d, .621e).

Purpose / intent
- To modify Michigan’s expungement (setting aside convictions) law to allow certain applications to proceed even if the applicant was convicted of another offense during the statutory waiting period — and to change how “contemporaneous” convictions are treated when seeking to set aside multiple convictions by petition.

Key provisions
1. Removal of disqualification for convictions occurring during waiting period (applications)
- Current law: An applicant is ineligible to have a conviction set aside by application if they were convicted of any criminal offense during the applicable waiting period (3, 5, or 7 years depending on offense(s)).
- HB 5957: Deletes that disqualification for expungements requested by application (i.e., an applicant may seek relief even if convicted of another offense during the relevant waiting period). (Amends MCL 780.621d/1d.)

  1. Revision to “contemporaneous” / multiple-conviction rule

    • Current rule treats multiple felony or multiple misdemeanor convictions as a single conviction for petition-timing purposes when the offenses “occurred within 24 hours and arose from the same transaction,” except where any offense is assaultive, involves a dangerous weapon, or has a maximum penalty ≥10 years (or would be assaultive if committed in Michigan).
    • HB 5957 revises the language to focus on whether “the conduct underlying the convictions occurred within 24 hours and arose from the same transaction,” keeping the same listed exceptions. (Amends MCL 780.621b/1b.)
    • The bill retains the definition reference for “dangerous weapon.”

  2. Other procedural provisions retained

    • Existing application procedures (certified conviction records, fingerprints, service on AG/prosecutor, $50 state police processing fee, and FBI fingerprint check) remain in the statutory text as shown; HB 5957 does not eliminate these filing requirements in the portions provided.

Who is affected
- Individuals seeking to set aside convictions by application: broader eligibility because a subsequent conviction during the waiting period will not automatically disqualify the application.
- Prosecutors and courts: will review applications even when the applicant has intervening convictions; courts may see changes to caseload composition.
- Department of State Police and FBI: continue to process fingerprints and reports for applications.
- Potentially employers, landlords, licensing boards, and others who rely on conviction records if more convictions are set aside.

Fiscal/procedural impact
- House Fiscal Agency: indeterminate fiscal impact on local courts. HB 5957 could change filing patterns (applicants may file a single application covering multiple eligible convictions) and alter administrative workloads. No specific dollar estimates provided.

Notes
- HB 5957 addresses expungement by application. A companion bill (HB 5958) deals with automatic expungements; together they seek to expand access to set-aside relief.
- The bill is not enacted law; further committee and Senate action are required.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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